Posts by Bryan Barnett-Woods

Bryan Barnett-Woods is a transportation planner in Prince George’s County with the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission. In addition to bicycling and rowing, Bryan likes nothing more than a good walk in the city. He lives in Barney Circle with his wife and young son. The opinions expressed in this post represent Bryan’s opinions only and do not represent the opinions of his employer.

First started in Ottawa, Canada, the #TransitChallenge is a week-long pledge to leave one’s car at home and instead use public transit or active transportation like bicycling or walking. In June, nine Montgomery County officials organized by the Action Committee for Transit also took the challenge and tweeted about how their trips went. Keep reading…

As on-street parking becomes more coveted, cities are looking for ways to better manage those spaces. In January 2019, the District Department of Transportation (DDOT) published a final report from its year-long Penn Quarter/Chinatown Parking Pricing Pilot program. Keep reading…

The Prince George’s County Council recently discussed legislation designed to better implement residential parking permits. The bill is a positive step towards better managing on-street parking for the county's growing communities and neighborhoods, but one challenge for any such legislation is addressing how residents perceive property rights, ownership of street space, and what’s “fair.” Keep reading…

Whether it’s an apartment building, shopping center, or a mixed-use project, ostensibly well-intentioned residents regularly cite worsening traffic as the reason to stop new development. However, the most common methods communities push for to alleviate congestion make it worse, while the things that actually help usually face strong pushback. Keep reading…

A 15-minute trip between the two cities is an exciting vision, to be sure, and Musk has a lot of fans of his ideas because of his track record of making some of his ideas a reality. Unfortunately, this project likely isn't one of those. The few parts we know about (and we don't know much) neglect some transportation fundamentals. Keep reading…

On October 23, the Prince George’s County Council voted to approve a new zoning ordinance—a significant achievement for the county and a big step towards building sustainable and resilient communities. It also approved new subdivision regulations, an updated landscape manual, and a process to re-zone the entire county. Keep reading…

Is there enough parking in Prince George's County? It’s common to hear residents decry the perceived lack of parking, usually along with some anecdote about driving around for half an hour looking for a parking spot or having to wait in a lot for someone to leave, but is this the norm or the exception? Keep reading…

When there’s a new subdivision planned, the new homes and other buildings come with a corresponding amount of additional vehicle trips. If the road network can’t handle the expected traffic, the developer is required to build whatever transportation projects are necessary to accommodate them. Keep reading…

Trails like Four-Mile Run in Arlington; the Washington, Baltimore & Annapolis in Prince George’s County; and the Marvin Gaye Trail in Washington all help people stay active, connect neighborhoods and workplaces, and support sustainable modes of transportation. Unfortunately, most of the time jurisdictions build their own trails without considering the greater network they feed into. Keep reading…

Many neighborhoods in DC, from Capitol Hill to Petworth to Georgetown, have streets lined with rowhomes. This style evolved in response to the city's constraints on space, and these houses also help fill the need for a type of housing that's between detached homes and large apartment buildings. Keep reading…

Prince George's County’s proposed zoning ordinance includes new regulations to encourage connectivity between developments for people walking, bicycling, and driving. The County Council is currently considering overhauling the 50+ year-old zoning code and adopting a new one to guide future development. Keep reading…

Whether it’s an apartment building, shopping center, or a mixed-use project, ostensibly well-intentioned residents regularly cite worsening traffic as the reason to stop new development. However, the most common methods communities push for to alleviate congestion make it worse, while the things that actually help usually face strong pushback. Keep reading…

In 2014, the Maryland Department of Transportation developed an ambitious Twenty-Year Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan. The state's policies for building bicycle facilities on state roads are well-intentioned, but unfortunately the results often do not meet the needs of people who bike. Keep reading…

To some Prince George's residents, it can seem like decisions that affect the neighborhood are made in a black box. A new provision in the county's ongoing zoning update could help address this. Keep reading…

Unfortunately, since zoning is ubiquitous throughout the development process, elected officials often try to use zoning legislation to coax developers in a different direction and to address community complaints — regardless of whether it's really the best mechanism to do so. Keep reading…

Some communities try to use zoning to force a specific type of business to be built in the neighborhood or to prevent too many people from moving in. Zoning laws can be a powerful way to shape neighborhoods — which means they're often abused. Keep reading…

Including green building standards in the ordinance will help ensure that new development in Prince George’s will meet a minimum level of environmental friendliness. This in turn will help protect natural resources, reduce emissions, and generally support better health for everyone in the county.Keep reading…

Prince George's new zoning code is could try a different approach by allowing commercial buildings by-right in multi-family residential areas. This allows for organic mixed use growth, as opposed to the “do everything at once approach” that is not working now. Keep reading…